3/5 stars

By midquarter, many UW students find themselves slipping into a dismal routine of sleeping at Odegaard and haunting University Teriyaki. This monotony makes it easy to forget that you’re living in a city — Seattle. Remember? As it turns out, you’re a short bus ride from countless great restaurants, shops, parks and bars, all of which are featured in the 2009 Not For Tourists Guide to Seattle (NFT Guide).

As the name implies, the Not For Tourists Guide by Susan Arthur, Jessica Baxter and Fred Beldin is marketed toward the Seattle resident looking to branch out and liven up a stale routine. The book is surprisingly comprehensive, given the ambitious undertaking of mapping out where to go and what to do in each of Seattle’s many neighborhoods.

Perhaps the most appealing feature of the book is its binding. The NFT Guide is compiled in a black moleskine notebook, complete with rounded edges and elastic band. So if you’re self-conscious about being the “guy with the map,” the NFT Guide is an inconspicuous resource, easily crammed into a backpack or purse.

The guidebook includes information on 49 Seattle and Eastside neighborhoods. Each section includes a description of the area, a detailed map and advice on everything from restaurants and grocery stores to music venues and nightlife.

Although any book that sells itself as an “insider’s guide” is immediately suspect, the NFT Guide certainly seems to have the U-District down pat.

“Thai food reigns supreme with seemingly dozens of joints on every block varying wildly in quality and price. Thai Tom is worth the long wait for a seat, but check out the slightly less delicious Thai 65 if you’re in a hurry,” the book recommends.

The contributing authors are also quite apparently plugged into local happenings. They make note of the U-District’s designation as an “alcohol impact zone,” advising visitors to “plan ahead if you need some fortified wine for a sorority party.”

While info on the area surrounding campus may be useful to freshmen, the true value of the NFT Guide is its meticulous descriptions of the entertainment found in those less familiar Seattle neighborhoods.

So if you’re heading to Bainbridge for the day and are unsure how frequently the ferries come (“every 50 minutes or so”), or how much it costs (“$6.75 for adults”) or where to catch an art film on the island (“The Lynnwood Theatre”), the NFT Guide has you covered.

The book is especially useful for those students with horizontally printed licenses getting tired of visiting the same happy hours week after week.

For Ballard barhopping, the NFT Guide astutely advises that “spots like Hattie’s Hat, Tractor Tavern, King’s Hardware, and the People’s Pub have the bases covered for great neighborhood nightlife.”

Although the NFT Guide is not expensive ($13.57 on Amazon.com), the publisher also offers a free resource for Seattlites at notfortourists.com/Seattle that includes daily blog postings and recommendations from other readers. So pick yourself up off that moldy library couch, abstain from UT for one afternoon and explore Seattle.

Reach reporter Joe Darda at arts@dailyuw.com.